Stunning properties that started life as an artist's workshop and a single-car garage have proved that size doesn't matter when it comes to creating your dream home.

Thanks to their inspired transformations, five bijou homes - including a once cramped London terrace that's just three metres wide and eight metres deep - are now in the running to be named House of the Year by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

All of the homes feature on the next installment of Channel 4's Grand Designs, which is showcasing the jaw-dropping properties in the running for the prestigious prize.

MODERN MEWS, LONDON

Architects turned this London terrace - which is just three metres wide and eight metres deep - into an airy, light-filled space

Part of the first floor has been turned into a glass floor that allows more light to stream in to the rooms on the ground floor

Exposed brick walls complement the oak timber stairscase that leads up to the first floor of the home

Oak and glass feature prominently throughout the house - here is a sunken bath is lined with more exposed brickwork

The striking staircase was moved into the centre of the four-storey structure, freeing up more space for light to pour in

This four-storey terrace home in London was once shrouded in darkness, with windows at the front of the house the only source of natural light..

Coffey Architects remodelled the structure - which is just 3m wide and 8m deep - to create a beautiful, space-efficient modern home that looks much larger than it actually is.

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By moving the staircase to the centre of the house, they removed the need for corridors, and freed up space for light to pour in.

Huge panes of glass were added to the three-bedroom house, not just as windows but also as floors, allowing natural light to stream into the rooms.

A glass floor skylight at the front of the house adds makes the rooms even brighter, and it's all perfectly complemented by the warmth of the oak timber used throughout.

Owners Ruth and Dan said of the transformation: 'We knew the configuration of the house had to change, and it was going to need some sort of serious overhaul for us to be able to do that.'

GARDEN HOUSE IN HACKNEY

The Garden House was squeezed onto the plot of an old artist's workshop in Hackney, in North East London

With no room for a garden outside their property built, owners Paddy and Kia created one on their roof

The house's bespoke roof is planted with 800 sedums and heathers that line the rows of stepped beds

The owners' art collection is displayed throughout the house, which used to be their workspace but is now their home

A steel staircase just 5mm thick doesn't take up too much space in the small property, and is carefully disengaged from the wall so that light can pass through

Paddy and Kia didn't let living in expensive and cramped inner-city London stop them creating a garden to cherish at their urban home.

With no room to install one outside the one-bedroom property they built for £307,000 on a tight, 85 sq m in Hackney's de Beauvoir Conservation area, they turned their roof into a leafy retreat.

The pioneering bespoke roof is lined with stepped beds, filled with 800 sedum and heather plants.

Skylights allow plenty of light to fill their small but perfectly styled home, that has a living room, kitchen, bedroom and workspace for the artist owners.

Their two-storey home replaced a cramped, one-storey workspace that once stood on the site.

Paddy and Kia have maximised the space available inside by installing a folded steel staircase that is just 5mm thick.

It is disengaged from the wall which allows natural light to pass behind it, creating the illusion of more space.

THE NORTH VAT HOUSE IN DUNGENESS, KENT

The North Vat House sits in Dungeness, on the coast of Kent, an area that is formed largely of a shingle beach

Drawing inspiration from the beach huts, the dark stained wooden cladding makes the home particularly striking

The home on the south coast of Kent is a collection of sheds, connected by an almost invisible glass partition

The architect's brief was to create a single living environment, allowing for entertainment, enjoyment and art

The architects suggest the interior, with its windows framing the views, is like 'walking in and out of the rooms feels like walking in and out of the landscape'

The North Vat house is actually a collection of sheds that sits on a shingle beach in Dungeness, on the Kent coast.

The dark stained appearance of the structures, built by Rodic Davidson Architects, was inspired by pitched roof huts that line the beachfront.

Replacing the fisherman's cottage that once sat there, the brief from retired owners Pauline and David was to create a simple space that was a single living environment that allowed for entertainment, enjoyment and art.

The main, two-storey shed houses a double bedroom and a shower room upstairs, a large open living and dining area, and a kitchen.

It is connected by an almost invisible glass partition to smaller 'baby sheds', which are extra bedrooms.

Inside is a simple living layout, with glass partitions between some rooms to maximise the natural light pouring in.

The architects say that 'walking in and out of the rooms feels like walking in and out of the landscape'.

THE NARROW HOUSE, HOVE

The Narrow House (middle) fits snugly between these building on the seafront in Hove

The structure blends into its surroundings thanks to its sleek white exterior

The house has been kept deliberately simple to show off the owner's art collection - a blend of wood panels and concrete

The staircase is a piece of art in itself - featuring a laser cut pattern that is spells out a shipping forecast in Morse code

The roof terrace juts out from the property and offers stunning views out to the sea from the south coast

The Narrow House has made impressive use of space to transform a 4.7 metre-wide former garage into a home resembling a work of art on the south coast in Hove.

It has been designed to blend in with the row of white buildings that surrounds it, but the simple exterior is in stark contrast to the mix of materials used inside the three-floor home.

Every conceivable inch of space has been used to exhibit the owner's unique collection of art, and the house itself even incorporates creative touches - like the laser cut steps of the staircase which spell out a shipping forecast in Morse code.

A partially submerged ground floor allows for a spare bedroom and a utility room, beneath the living and dining area and a television room on the first floor.

Upstairs is a master bedroom and an office, and a roof terrace - complete with a breathtaking sea view - houses a mini sculpture park.

CONTEMPORARY LEAN-TO IN HARROGATE

This contemporary lean-to on the side of the Victorian semi-detached house adds a new dimension to the property

The angles jut out at the side, allowing for a staircase within that now connects all elements of the house

Previously the only access to the garden was via a steep set of stairs - the removal allowed direct access to the first floor, the garden and the basement

The basement rooms were opened up, adding a whole new floor to the contemporary family home

A family who totally transformed their living space thanks to a contemporary lean-to extension have also found their home in the running for the architects' award.

Ruth Donnelly of Doma Architects' aim was to 'unlock the potential of the entire house' by creating the extension, which is just 66sq m.

The inspired extension was added to a Victorian semi-detached property located in the Harrogate Conservation area, replacing a steep set of external stone steps that had been the only access point to the garden.

The new, interior staircase links all elements of the house, and the removal of the outdoor steps freed up space to remodel the basement rooms - adding a whole new dimension to the property.